Nielsen's list of the top ten "time-shifted" prime time TV shows takes stock of whose ratings benefited the most from DVR in 2009. What do they have in common? They're all the shows you keep begging your friends to watch.

Other than a couple of tween-driven clunkers at the bottom of the list—and the people who forgot to take "Heroes" off their DVR in 2007—this is a comprehensive list of some of the best, least watched TV of the year. Which makes sense, given the way the ratings are structured. A million people DVRing "Mad Men" is going to make a much bigger difference to that show's time-shifted rating than a million people DVRing "American Idol." So what you're left with is essentially ten shows with passionate, technologically savvy fan bases. Though it looks like in a couple of these cases, not quite passionate enough to save the show from extinction. Sorry, "Dollhouse." I should've done more to spread the word. [NY Times]